


we can take it slow and I can show you how to slow dance

by athletiger



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: A4 Spoilers, Angst with a Happy Ending, Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Bittersweet Ending, F/M, Introspection, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-26
Updated: 2019-04-26
Packaged: 2020-02-04 16:49:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18608569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/athletiger/pseuds/athletiger
Summary: Bucky sat next to him, all young and sprite. He had a twinkle in his eyes, one that Steve hadn’t seen for a very long time.“Satisfied?” Bucky asked.Steve nodded. “Very.”“I’m glad. You deserved it, kid.”Steve laughed. “I’m less of a kid than you are,kid.” Bucky snorted in affront.“You’ll pay for that, punk. I’ll make sure of it.” The threat was less than threatening with the way Bucky’s face broke out into a bright grin by the end of it. Steve laughed, and after a moment, Bucky broke down and chuckled with him.





	we can take it slow and I can show you how to slow dance

**Author's Note:**

> I posted a summary that hopefully avoided spoilers, and I completely apologize if I did. This is my first out of possibly many A4 fics, and I hope you enjoy!

At one time, now oh so many years ago, Thor promised them Valhalla.

Steve put down his shield for the last time, sitting there on the bench by the lake on the same day that changed the fate of their lives.

 _“Live life a little_ ,” Tony had said to him. _He_ did, slinging one hand around Pepper’s shoulder and carrying small Morgan in his arms.

And so he did. Went back in time, found Peggy, stuck out a hand while he stood in the middle of SHIELD headquarters, and requested, “May I take you out for a dance? I’m a little less flat-footed after all these years.”

And he loved her. Still loves her, will always love her in his heart.

Still, throughout all these years, it felt like something was missing, like there was a missing puzzle piece that prevented him from being whole. It took several months to figure out that he was missing something, an abnormally long time when he thought about it, but Peggy had always sensed that he wasn’t always there with her.

“What’s on your mind?” she asked, brushing a gentle hand down his arm. She was not angry that he wasn’t all there with her, just curious, and he pressed a gentle against her temple.

“Nothing,” Steve said, rocking their bodies together as the music continued playing. “Just thinking about the past. Well, my alternate future...all this time travel is confusing.”

“Want to tell me about it?” Peggy tilted her head up and leaned in for a kiss. Steve happily pressed his lips against hers, but at that moment, he realized: he wanted to capture someone else’s lips too. “You went on a long journey to finally get here.”

“I’m not sure your clearance is high enough to listen to my story,” Steve joked, and Peggy swatted his arm in retaliation.

“I’ll have you know that I have higher clearance than you. Besides, I don’t think you want to go to a therapist.”

“You think correctly.”

“But I can sense that you want to tell someone about it.” Peggy kissed the underside of his jaw, circling her hands around Steve’s waist and interlacing her fingers against the small of his back. “It’s a story that you can’t hold inside, and sometimes it’s just like that. You don’t have to tell me right now, but I’m always willing to lend an ear when you need it.”

For so many years, he kept so many secrets bottled up inside, not knowing who to trust, not knowing if speaking aloud what he had learned and experienced would come back to bite him in the ass. He trusted Peggy; maybe it was now time to let go some of those secrets. “ You’re right,” he said, clinging to her tighter.

And he told her his story, starting from the beginning when he woke up in the SHIELD facility, freshly pulled out from the ice, fighting constantly battle after battle for the good of America and Earth. He talked about him finding Bucky, mind wiped from HYDRA’s experiments, saving him and giving him a new life and new future. He told her about the way his last mission was to space, losing to a madman who wiped out half of all living creatures, and the way they redeemed the universe five years later.

“You know, this Tony Stark,” Peggy began when Steve finally finished his story. The turntable was still turning, but it was no longer playing music, and they had moved to sit down on the couch as the sun went down and the moon rose. “He was the center of your life. You both gone to hell and back for each other.”

“But Bucky...” Steve initially protested. Steve promised him “till the end of the line,” and Peggy nodded.

“You’ve done so much for him, but he wasn’t your…” Peggy paused here, biting her lip and looking off to the side. “Tony knew who you are, where your values stood, fought for you, saved you. And you did the same. He may have had Pepper and his kid, and you now have me, but you both came together when the world needed you most, and you had the camaraderie binding you both together in a bond that was even stronger than your bond with Bucky. He wanted you to have a happy life.”

She placed a hand on the nape of his neck, pulling him forward so that their foreheads touched. “I love you, and I know you love me, but deep down inside, you love him too because the sacrifice he gave to the whole universe ultimately was for you.”

“I...love him.” The words sounded strange on his tongue when he thought about Tony, but the images entered his mind, unbidden. They fought together against the Chitauri, him kneeling over Tony’s prone body when he fell from the wormhole; Tony’s need of peace with Ultron so they didn’t have to fight anymore; Tony looking at him when he stumbled out of the _Benetar_ with relief in his eyes.

And his ultimate sacrifice, right arm and half of his face blackened and burnt from the power of the Stones, destroying his body, but still he looked past Pepper for a moment to look at Steve; his last image was of Steve before he died. “I love him.”

His voice was stronger now, with conviction. Indeed, he did, and Peggy nodded. “There’s always going to be a portion of you that is always going to love him.”

Steve wrapped his arms around Peggy’s waist. She felt fragile in his arms, but her mind and spirit was strong, much stronger than his, and he breathes in her scent. “But I’m here now.”

Peggy kissed him, loving and happy. “I know.”

Peggy’s gone now, the same day she left him in the original timeline, and Steve had grown old. He was satisfied with his life, having experienced what Tony have had during his time, but now he was ready to move on.

Vibranium shield passed on, he looked out into the water and saw the casket of Tony Stark floating down the river. He’s ready.

Bucky sat next to him, all young and full of sprite. He had a twinkle in his eyes, one that Steve hadn’t seen for a very long time.

“Satisfied?” Bucky asked.

Steve nodded. “Very.”

“I’m glad. You deserved it, kid.”

Steve laughed. “I’m less of a kid than you are, _kid_.” Bucky snorted in affront.

“You’ll pay for that, punk. I’ll make sure of it.” The threat was less than threatening with the way Bucky’s face broke out into a bright grin by the end of it. Steve laughed, and after a moment, Bucky broke down and chuckled with him.

When the laughter died down, Steve said, “I’m going to miss you. I wish we had longer.”

“I know Steve, but what we had, that was good too.”

He reached out to Bucky, and Bucky scooted in closer, clinging to his best friend. They sat there, watching the casket sail away until it was out of sight.

-

This was a familiar place that he hadn’t seen in years, but he remembered it like yesterday. He sold their house and moved back into an apartment.

His apartment, the one he had that was next to Sharon’s so very long ago. He was surprised it wasn’t demolished during the Snap, but he was glad it wasn’t. The wave of nostalgia swept over him, and he looked on with bittersweet memories, thinking about the happy times and the sad ones too.

He crawled into bed, inhaling, exhaling.

Inhale, exhale.

Inhale…

“Hey Cap, blueberry?”

Steve turned around, and Tony was there, holding out a packet of dried blueberries in his hand. He wore his tattered jeans and his grey ACDC shirt, and he looked young, happy.

Natasha appeared beside him. “Hey Steve,” she said. Her hair was red, and she had a soft smile on her face.

He’s home again, and he stepped forward into the light, taking Tony’s proffered hand.

**Author's Note:**

> I have a [tumblr](https://la-toratempesta.tumblr.com/post/184460668133/we-can-take-it-slow-and-i-can-show-you-how-to-slow), but I'm on [discord](https://discord.gg/GmngwSW) more often!


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